Zephaniah 3: 14-20; For
the Psalm: Canticle 9; Philippians
4: 4-7; Luke
3: 7-18
This is a homily by Fr. Gene Tucker, offered
to St. John’s Church, in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania on Sunday, December 13, 2015.
“CONFESSION...BAPTISM…ACTION”
(Homily text: Luke 3: 7 - 18)
(This
morning, there is no homily, since we are blessed to have the wonderful choir
“Essence 2” with us this morning. In lieu of a homily, I am offering this reflection on this morning’s gospel
reading.)
This morning, we hear a continuation
of last week’s gospel. Last week, we
heard the first six verses of Luke’s gospel account, taken from chapter
three. In last week’s account, Luke told
us about John the Baptist’s ministry, which was a baptism for the repentance of
sins. Luke tells us that the Baptist’s
ministry was in accordance with Isaiah’s prophecy, that a time would come when
all of God’s people would be called to “prepare the way of the Lord,” making
“his paths straight”.
Now, John emphasizes his warning,
telling those who would listen that they were not to claim that, because they
were children of Abraham, that they were – by virtue of that inheritance –
automatically in some favored status by God.
Then he said, “Even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees”, adding
that
“every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the
fire.” “Bear fruit worthy of repentance,” John told his listeners.
If we look at the trajectory of
John’s message, we see this pattern:
Confession
& Baptism→→→→→→Actions
If we think about it, this is the
progression that every Christian is called to follow….we enter the waters of
baptism, shedding our old way of life, and part of that way of life involves
the ability to commit acts which are displeasing to God…put another way, we are
called to “Renounce Satan and all his works”, as our baptismal ceremony puts
it.
Then, our baptismal liturgy
continues by asking if the newly baptized (and their parents and Godparents)
will do certain things in response to God’s love, made known in the rite of
baptism: These questions have to do with
concrete actions that are marks of a faithful Christian life:[1]
- Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of the bread and in the prayers?
- Will you persevere in resisting evil, and whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
- Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?
- Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
- Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
To each of these
questions, the answer given is “I will, with God’s help.”
The point of
these questions is to say that confession of sin is an ongoing process, a
process which will follow the baptized all throughout life. Though baptism confers an indelible mark on a
person’s soul, that person remains in need of forgiveness and amendment of
life, all throughout life.
But notice, as
well, the ongoing nature of the ways in which we will strengthen our
relationship with God through Christ: We
do this by regularly coming to worship, by studying God’s Holy Word, the Bible,
and by taking an active and ongoing role in receiving the Sacraments of the
Church, Holy Communion being among one of the more important of those
Sacraments.
Then, the way in
which we act, proclaiming by “Word and example”, is also an ongoing occupation,
for we will continue to encounter other persons throughout our earthly
journey. The Letter of James underscores
the importance of actions which bear witness to our faith. In James 1: 22, we read, “…Be does of the
word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” James then adds, a little later on, these
words: “…But someone will say, ‘You have
faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will
show you my faith by my works.” (James 2: 18)
In our gospel
passage for this morning, some of John the Baptist’s hearers ask pointed
questions about the ways in which they ought to live out the reality of their
forgiven life in God.
- To those who possess some of the world’s riches, he said, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none.”
- To the tax collectors, he said, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.”
- To the Roman soldiers, he said, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
Perhaps each of
us can find similar ways to live out our own baptized reality in the times, the
places and the circumstances in which we find ourselves today.
May that ever be so with us. Amen.
